MINNEAPOLIS -- When the Minnesota Twins sent Oswaldo Arcia down to Triple-A Rochester for the third time this season prior to the All Star break, manager Ron Gardenhire said he hoped it wasn't for long.

"I like to have his bat up here," Gardenhire said. "But you could tell it was in his head. He was missing pitches by a foot, and wasn't seeing the ball."

Gardenhire may get his wish sooner than later.

Arcia went 3 for 4 on Sunday, hitting his eighth Triple-A home run in a 5-3 win over the Syracuse Chiefs. That marked back-to-back games in which the lefty thumper had homered.

Arcia is now 5 for 8 (.625) since going back to the minors, and with just Clete Thomas (.158/.256/.158 in July) and Ryan Doumit (.263/.283/.351 this month) in his way, it might not be long before the Twins see fit to bring the No. 41 prospect (Baseball America) back up -- possibly for good.

"It shocks him," Gardenhire said of the demotion. "Now he goes down there and gets a little pissed off. He'll put that much more into it, and he'll get in and get some pitches he can hit, and he'll start hitting them again, and his confidence will go back up. I don't really want this to be a long-term thing. We really like having him here; we need him here."